In a historic event, US President Donald Trump met on Wednesday morning with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the first meeting between a US and Syrian president in 25 years.
The meeting took place in Saudi Arabia, where Trump is finishing his visit before heading to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as part of his trip to the Middle East. Trump agreed to meet with Shaara after being pressured “to say hello” to him by the Saudi Crown Prince and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Sharaa is in Riyadh for a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The minutes, which lasted for about 33 minutes, took place a day after Trump made a surprise announcement on Tuesday evening that he was lifting all sanctions on Syria. The move came despite Israel’s reservations about Sharaa’s previous ties to al-Qaida and its warning to Trump to keep the sanctions in place. Some members of Trump’s government also have serious concerns about Sharaa, who is still officially designated by the US as a jihadist terrorist.
יש גם וידאו של טראמפ – א-שרע – בן סלמאן https://t.co/5Fw9yb9t6W pic.twitter.com/6U81IA8Kp2
— roi kais • روعي كايس • רועי קייס (@kaisos1987) May 14, 2025
At the meeting, Trump urged Sharaa to normalize relations with Israel, according to a statement from the White House. He also asked him to deport Palestinian terrorists from the country along with all foreign terrorists.
The White House statement said: “Today, President Trump, at the invitation of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, met with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. President Erdogan of Turkey joined by phone. President Erdogan praised President Trump for lifting sanctions on Syria and committed to working alongside Saudi Arabia to encourage peace and prosperity in Syria. The Crown Prince also commended President Trump for his decision to lift the sanctions, calling it courageous. President Trump thanked President Erdogan and the Crown Prince for their friendship, and told President al-Sharaa that he has a tremendous opportunity to do something historic in his country.”
“President Trump encouraged President al-Sharaa to do a great job for the Syrian people, and urged him to: 1. Sign onto the Abraham Accords with Israel. 2. Tell all foreign terrorists to leave Syria. 3. Deport Palestinian terrorists. 4. Help the United States to prevent the resurgence of ISIS. 5. Assume responsibility for ISIS detention centers in Northeast Syria.”
“President al-Sharaa thanked President Trump, the Crown Prince, and President Erdogan for their efforts to put together the meeting, and recognized the significant opportunity presented by the Iranians leaving Syria, as well as shared US-Syrian interests in countering terrorism and eliminating chemical weapons. President al-Sharaa affirmed his commitment to the 1974 disengagement with Israel. President al-Sharaa concluded with his hope that Syria would serve as a critical link in facilitating trade between east and west, and invited American companies to invest in Syrian oil and gas. The Russia-Ukraine war and the war in Gaza was also discussed.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
I’d very weary. Very weary! These guys aren’t trustworthy! Trump also loved Kim ill Junk from North Korea. It seems that all he cares about is what history would write about him. The Houthis are all of the sudden great people as are the Iranians. At the very same moment they shot 3 missiles at our closest ally! Sociopathic and narcissistic with an overdose of naivete it seems to me.